Given that 2,000 buffalo roam on the outskirts of Custer City, South Dakota, it’s not surprising that the town has a buffalo fixation. We found one on every corner!
This colorful creature was one of many buffalo sculptures we found in Custer City.
Over the past several years, Peggy and I have been in a number of communities that feature sculptures of animals. Several have been buffalo, but we have also seen bears, cows, horses, elk, and sandhill cranes. I’ve little doubt that other communities feature dogs, cats, pigs and rhinos. Rhinos? Apparently you can find a hundred of them in Cape Town, South Africa. We love the unique, colorful, sculptures. Like murals, they are attractive to locals and visitors alike, and encourage both community pride and tourism.
This ghostly buffalo…Was a lesson in buffalo anatomy, as well as a possible Halloween treat. All of the buffalo featured ‘keep off the buffalo’ signs like the one beneath the buffalo’s chin. I could see tourists climbing on top or plopping their 5-year-old on top for photos. Rare white buffalo were considered sacred by American Indians and played important roles in their legends.One side of the white buffalo sculpture featured horses that were used by the Indians for hunting buffalo.Several buffalo featured local scenery.And buffalos, including a painting of a very colorful buffalo escaping from a forest fire.This large brown fellow featured another large brown buffalo and a buffalo herd. We really liked the way the buffalo’s shoulder provided a three dimensional effect for the painted buffalo.A more abstract painting on another sculpture featured a buffalo, horse, possible medicine man, mountains, desert, and a lightning storm.A dramatic scene that featured a Native American with his dog and two lurking wolves.The artist for this buffalo sculpture in Custer City featured mountain goats, including one romping on top of its head. Note the scene on the back…It’s a scene from along the Needles Highway in Custer State Park, which is named for its dramatic rock formations— a must-see of the park. Mountain goats live there. We will feature the narrow, curvy highway with its gorgeous scenery and tunnels our truck could barely fit through in our next South Dakota post two weeks from now.
Next Monday’s post will feature the Egyptian myth of Osiris and Isis plus the ancient Egyptian city of Memphis near Cairo.
Wandering through Time and Place 